TSA 10 Years After 9/11

The 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks is quickly approaching and it's been nearly a decade since the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created in response to the attacks. As somebody who started in the beginning, it is incredible to look back and see how far we've come and how much more secure aviation is today. 

The one year anniversary of 9/11 was my first day with TSA at the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG). I joined TSA for the same reason many of my colleagues did: I was appalled by the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and wanted to help in any way I could. We’ve had plenty of questions over the past ten years, but one of the most common questions we hear is, “How has TSA made travel safer?” 

Well, here are just a few of the many steps we’ve taken, including those we have taken to address specific 9/11 Commission recommendations over the past ten years: 

• In-Flight Security – Hardened cockpit doors, Federal Flight Deck Officers, the Crew Member Self Defense Training Program and an expanded Federal Air Marshal Service, better protect the flight deck against an act of criminal violence or air piracy. 
• 100% Screening – Through Secure Flight, 100% of passengers flying to, from, and within the U.S. are prescreened against government watchlists. TSA screens 100 percent of checked baggage for dangerous items including explosives, and 100% of all air cargo transported on passenger aircraft that depart U.S. airports is screened.        a-e-i-o-u .
• Professionalized Workforce – The Transportation Security Officers (TSO) working at 450 airports today are hired through a rigorous vetting process and extensive training that did not exist for the contract personnel who worked the security checkpoints on 9/11. TSOs have an average of 3.5 years of experience on the job, compared with the average of 3 months of experience for screeners prior to 9/11. Prior to 9/11, turnover in the industry was over 125 percent – today, TSA’s turnover rate is 6.4 percent. 
• New Technology – Today through Advanced Imaging Technology and Automated Target Recognition, we can detect metallic and nonmetallic threats including weapons and explosives concealed under layers of clothing on passengers without physical contact. And, using Advanced Technology X-ray, Bottled Liquid Scanners and Explosives Trace Detection (ETD) Technology, we can more efficiently and effectively screen luggage and belongings for potential threats. 
• Information Sharing and Detection – Through Secure Flight, Travel Document Checking and collaboration with our international partners, we can identify passengers who pose a risk to security, verify someone is who they say there are, and better protect the entire global aviation system.

Threats to airline safety are constantly evolving and TSA must evolve with them. We deploy an array of unpredictable and visible deterrents, and use a layered security approach to keep the traveling public safe.

Blogger Bob

TSA Blog Team

If you’d like to comment on an unrelated topic you can do so in our Off Topic Comments post. You can also view our blog post archives or search our blog to find a related topic to comment in. If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact a Customer Support Manager at the airport you traveled, or will be traveling through by using Talk to TSA.

Traveling With Medication

TSA was in the news last week after a passenger alleged we prohibited her from bringing insulin through the checkpoint at Denver International Airport (DEN). While we did search the passenger’s bag after an alarm and did not allow an oversized, unfrozen ice pack to be brought on board, (in adherence with the 3-1-1 liquid regulations) our initial review of this incident including interviews with the officers and a review of the CCTV indicates that the cooler contained a sports drink and a melted icepack, but not insulin. Because the passenger stated that she was a diabetic, she was permitted to take the sports drink through the checkpoint. .
    
While we’re on the topic… Medication is ok to place in your carry-on or checked luggage in any form. From our web page: "All medications in any form or type (for instance, pills, injectables, or homeopathic) and associated supplies (syringes, Sharps disposal container, pre-loaded syringes, jet injectors, pens, infusers, etc.) are allowed through the security checkpoint once they have been screened. Atropens, an auto-injection system that can help treat many emergency conditions (low heart rate, breathing problems, and excess saliva related to insecticide, nerve gas or mushroom poisoning) are also allowed. We do not require that your medications be labeled." (Read More)

TSA works with over 70 disability-related groups and organizations to help us understand the concerns of persons with disabilities and medical conditions. These groups have assisted TSA with integrating the unique needs of persons with disabilities into our airport operations.

Blogger Bob

TSA Blog Team

If you’d like to comment on an unrelated topic you can do so in our Off Topic Comments post. You can also view our blog post archives or search our blog to find a related topic to comment in. If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact a Customer Support Manager at the airport you traveled, or will be traveling through by using Talk to TSA.

Weird Science: Traveling With Homemade Gadgets

Device Found At Omaha Checkpoint

You may have heard in the news recently about how a college student unintentionally closed down a TSA checkpoint with his science project. He had shipped it to Omaha, but decided to travel with it on his departure. Let’s be clear, it was completely innocent. He had no way of knowing his improvised mint tin would look like an improvised explosive device (IED) on our X-ray monitor. Most people wouldn’t realize it and the purpose of this post is to inform folks that homemade gadgets (however cool they may be) can look like improvised explosive devices to our officers on the X-ray monitors. You may remember a blog post from Nico about homemade gadgets from back in 2009. The devices we’re looking for don’t look like the Wile E. Coyote Acme bomb, they are smaller these days and much harder to find.

I spoke with Dave today from TSA’s Explosives Operation Division about what types of thing can cause your bag to be checked. Watch the video to see what he had to say.

So when you pack your bags for a trip, you may want to think about what items you are placing next to others to avoid the hassle of unintentionally creating an X-ray image which could cause TSA to conduct a further inspection of your carry-on and checked bags.

Blogger Bob

TSA Blog Team 

If you’d like to comment on an unrelated topic you can do so in our Off Topic Comments post. You can also view our blog post archives or search our blog to find a related topic to comment in. If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact a Customer Support Manager at the airport you traveled, or will be traveling through by using Talk to TSA.

TSA To Pilot Using QR Codes® on Checkpoint Signage

TSA understands the usefulness and the power of QR codes^® and we’re about to start using them in a few airports to see how well the codes work with our checkpoint signage. First off, if you’ve never used or even heard of a QR Code^®, you’re probably wondering what it is. Let me explain…

QR Codes^® are two-dimensional codes readable by barcode readers on smartphones. If your phone doesn’t come with a reader, they’re available from multiple sources on the Internet for free. When the code is scanned, your phone will take you directly to a web page or other information without having to type any information into your phone.

This is a perfect way to say more with the limited space of traditional signage. For example, we can have a sign with a couple of tips about traveling with children, but by providing a QR code^®, we can point your smartphone to a video or a page with much more information. This is something you can review before the checkpoint, or you can bookmark it and read it later if you’re in a hurry.

We’ll be using the codes for lost and found info, customer service, procedural information, travel tips and more! If you have any ideas or suggestions, be sure to leave us a comment.

QR Code is registered trademark of DENSO WAVE INCORPORATED

Blogger Bob

TSA Blog Team 

If you’d like to comment on an unrelated topic you can do so in our Off Topic Comments post. You can also view our blog post archives or search our blog to find a related topic to comment in. If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact a Customer Support Manager at the airport you traveled, or will be traveling through by using Talk to TSA.

 

TSA Takes Further Steps to Enhance Passenger Privacy on Millimeter Wave Machines Nationwide

Back in February, I posted about how we had begun testing Automated Target Recognition (ATR) software for millimeter wave Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT).  The testing started at the Transportation Security Lab (TSL) back in the fall of 2010, and after piloting the software in the field (ATL, DCA, and LAS) we’re ready to start rolling it out!

Over the next few months, the software will be installed on every millimeter wave imaging technology unit in the field.  Future millimeter wave units will come with the new software already installed.  There are currently nearly 500 AIT units in the field (both backscatter and millimeter wave), and there are plans to roll out even more later this year. As far as backscatter units, there are plans to test similar software in the fall.

If you’re not familiar with ATR, it works with our imaging technology (Body Scanners) and eliminates passenger-specific images and replaces them with the generic outline of a person.  Here’s how it works: You step into the AIT machine and the new software will auto-detect potential threats and show their location. The image is on a monitor that is attached to the AIT unit in public view. Because this eliminates privacy concerns, we no longer have to place an officer in a separate room to view the images. 

Alarm image:

If there is no alarm, the following is displayed:

We are always looking for new technology and procedures that will both enhance security while strengthening privacy protections. That’s why we worked with the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science & Technology Directorate (S&T) and private industry to develop the software. For more information about TSA and advanced imaging technology, visit www.tsa.gov/ait.

Blogger Bob

TSA Blog Team

If you’d like to comment on an unrelated topic you can do so in our Off Topic Comments post. You can also view our blog post archives or search our blog to find a related topic to comment in. If you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact a Customer Support Manager at the airport you traveled, or will be traveling through by using Talk to TSA.